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Express Employment Professionals: 3 Insights to Land a Job

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jun 10, 2014) - Express Employment Professionals, the largest franchised staffing company in North America, today encouraged unemployed Canadians to adopt three steps to land a job.

Formulated after a recent national poll of the unemployed in Canada which was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from April 9 through April 21, 2014 among 1,502 unemployed Canadian adults, the steps advise that people who are looking for work can increase their chances of success by focusing on three key search methods.

"If you are out of work, these three steps can help get you back on track," said Bob Funk, CEO and chairman of the board for Express Employment Professionals. "It's clear from the research that treating a job search like a job, being open to a move, and hitting the books will dramatically increase your chances of a good job."

Treat a Job Search Like a Full-Time Job: 94 per cent of those surveyed agree that they are "working hard to find a job" but 32 per cent said they spent five or fewer hours looking for work the week prior to survey.

On average, the unemployed in Canada spent 14.5 hours a week looking for a job, and went on two interviews in the last month. "Looking for work is the hardest job there is, but the more time you dedicate to the task, the more likely you'll succeed," Funk said. "It's important to remain committed to the search and treat it like a full-time job. Use available resources like staffing companies to help you in your search. Only 31 per cent of the unemployed use or have used employment agencies."

Be Open to a Move: 62 per cent of the unemployed in Canada are unwilling to move to a new province. 37 per cent per cent of unemployed are "not at all willing" to relocate to a new city or town for a job.

In the current employment environment, eliminating the option of relocation can be a deciding factor in finding a job. "There is no doubt that moving is stressful, but new opportunities are available if you are open to new locations," Funk said.

Hit the Books: 51 per cent of unemployed have no plans to go back to school to make them more marketable.

"Becoming more marketable means getting your résumé in shape and networking but it can also mean getting more training or retrained," Funk said. "Gaining additional skills can widen the scope of a job search and increase the chances of success."

The survey was conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals and included 1,502 Canadian adults aged 18 or older who are unemployed but capable of working (whether or not they receive employment insurance) who participated in an online survey between April 9 and April 21, 2014. Results were weighted as needed for age by gender, education, race/ethnicity, region and household income. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. Totals may not equal the sum of its individual components due to rounding. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.

About Express Employment Professionals and Express in Canada

Express Employment Professionals puts people to work. It generated more than $2.5 billion in sales and employed nearly 400,000 people in 2013. Express ranks as the largest franchised staffing company and the second largest privately held staffing company in North America. Its long-term goal is to put a million people to work annually.

Express launched in Canada in July, 1996, with a franchise in London, Ontario, and since then, has expanded and grown in Canada significantly. There are currently 36 Express franchises in Canada - seven in British Columbia, six in Alberta, and 23 Ontario.